Ad description
A poster for BrewDog, seen on 12 May 2025, promoting its ‘Wingman’ beer had a heading stating, “BREWDOG. ALWAYS GOT YOUR BACK”. Text underneath stated, “Some things in life go AWOL – WiFi fails, the weather turns hostile, and your buddy’s ‘five minutes’ turns into a full-scale delay. But Wingman? Wingman stands firm. Always on station, always mission-ready, always got your back. Because every great operation deserves a great Wingman”. The poster featured images of a can of Wingman Session IPA alongside a pint glass containing the beer which was embellished with stickers including one that contained the text “ALWAYS GOT YOUR BACK”.
Issue
The complainant, who believed the ad implied that alcohol was a remedy for disappointment, suffering and isolation, challenged whether it breached the Code.
Response
BrewDog PLC t/a BrewDog did not believe the ad breached the Code. They said the ad did not suggest that alcohol was a solution to any form of personal, emotional or psychological difficulty. The scenarios referenced in the ad – WiFi outages, bad weather and a friend running late – were clearly framed as mundane, everyday annoyances and not substantive problems requiring resolution. They said the phrase “always got your back” was a widely used idiom denoting reliability and consistency, not emotional support or problem-solving. They believed the ad did not imply that Wingman Session IPA provided comfort, relief or escape from any form of distress. Rather, it positioned the product as being of reliable quality, not as a remedy or coping mechanism.
They also did not believe the ad claimed or implied that Wingman Session IPA had any therapeutic or mood-altering effects. The language used – “mission-ready”, “great operation” and “Wingman” – was metaphorical and aligned with the product’s name. Those phrases evoked camaraderie and reliability, not performance enhancement or emotional transformation.
Further, they did not believe the ad suggested alcohol was essential or a priority in life, implied that alcohol resolved emotional or psychological issues or portrayed alcohol as having health or performance benefits.
They referred to several previous ASA rulings which they believed were relevant. They said those rulings demonstrated that metaphorical or figurative language, particularly when used to convey brand identity or product reliability, was not inherently in breach of the CAP Code unless it explicitly implied therapeutic or emotional benefits. They said the language used in their ad was clearly metaphorical, aligned with established ASA precedent and did not imply that alcohol was a remedy for emotional or psychological issues.
Global, the media owner, said they had received no complaints about the ad and they had removed the ad from their sites.
Assessment
Upheld
The CAP Code stated that marketing communications must not imply that drinking alcohol can overcome boredom, loneliness or other problems.
The ASA acknowledged that the ad had an air force theme; in particular, the product’s name “Wingman”, the references to “always on station, always mission-ready”, “AWOL” and “every great operation” and some of the imagery, which included the product packaging featuring a bird wearing a flying jacket, helmet and googles. We considered that the references to Wingman “always got your back”, in that context, suggested Wingman was reliable, dependable and supportive. We noted BrewDog’s comments that the ad positioned Wingman Session IPA as being of reliable quality. However, we disagreed; the ad did not make any references to the product’s taste or other sensory elements that would lead to a beer being of high quality.
We acknowledged that the scenarios presented in the ad – WiFi outages, unexpected bad weather and a friend running late – were mundane and everyday annoyances. However, we considered that those scenarios, which would likely result in a person having to wait for an outcome outside of their control and having their day interrupted in a negative way, were likely to result in people feeling frustrated and bored, potentially lonely and would be likely to be viewed as problematic. We considered that although the ad used metaphorical language to evoke Wingman’s reliability, consistency and a sense of camaraderie, the scenarios presented were real-life problems that were likely to impact people in a negative way and the implication was that Wingman was a solution to overcoming those problems that were likely to result in boredom, frustration and potentially loneliness.
For those reasons, we considered the ad implied that drinking alcohol could overcome boredom, loneliness or other problems and concluded it breached the Code.
The ad breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rule 18.6 (Alcohol).
Action
The ad must not appear again in the form complained of. We told BrewDog PLC t/a BrewDog to ensure their future ads did not imply that drinking alcohol could overcome boredom, loneliness or other problems.
